Jesus let the chief priests and Pharisees understand that he was speaking about himself, and them. God gave the promise to the Israelites, and they rebelled at every turn. He had given them the Law so that they would understand what was required of them and when they turned away, he sent the prophets, and time and again they ignored them and often killed them.
And now, the Lord of the Vineyard has sent his Son, Jesus. Do they listen to him?
No. Their reaction to Jesus will be the same as to the prophets, they will have him rejected, beaten and crucified.
What they don't realize is that this will only be the beginning of the Son's reign. Jesus will rise from the dead and the world will never be the same.
Because the Jews rejected Jesus as the Messiah, he apostles turned to the Gentiles who were welcoming of this new Way of believing.
This parable did not influence the chief priest and the Pharisees to change their minds about Jesus; it made them angry and more determined to kill him.
How do we feel when friends or family call us on our actions which may not be how we are called to live? If we are not always truthful, do we admit to it and try to change? Or, does it make us angry and possibly walk away from friends or relatives?
It's often the child who is most like ourselves that we have problems with because we see in them what we don't always like in ourselves and it bothers us. Most of us do not like to be reminded of our faults!
But just like the chief priests and the Pharisees, we, too, need to be called to account for our actions so that we can repent, ask for forgiveness, and return to the open arms of our God.
